Podcasts

The Callie Crossley Show

A production of

Weds., June 22Maine Mural

Maine artist Judy Taylor was thrust into the national spotlight in March because of an ambitious, 11-panel painting she did for the state of Maine. As labor battles and union controversy bubbled up across the U.S. in March, Maine Gov. Paul LePage quietly removed a mural that Taylor had painted in tribute to Maine's long labor history. Supporters of the mural came out in droves to protest Gov. LePage's heavy hand, while the Gov's supporters applauded the decision to take down the work.

Judy Taylor joins us to talk about the mural, the controversy behind the work, and her other, quieter life as a working artist in Maine.<< view less

Support WGBH

Sign-up for WGBH News updates, WGBH promotions, and previews of what's coming up on WGBH TV.

ABOUT THE CALLIE CROSSLEY SHOW

Thursday, July 5, 2012

*Originally aired 11/02/12Walter Mosley on The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey

Late last year, Walter Mosley joined us to talk about his latest novel, The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey. Mosley’s protagonist, Ptolemy Grey, is an old, ailing recluse living in a dump of a cluttered apartment. His mind, on a downward spiral of dementia, is equally cluttered with a mashup of memories: the death of his wife, the lynching of a friend, his service in World War II. Then everything changes when he’s offered a Faustian bargain—a drug that will restore his brain in exchange for a shorter life. He takes the plunge, hoping mental clarity will help him solve a murder. Though Mosley may be best known for detective novels, his writing spans all genres: literary fiction, science fiction, crime and social commentary. In The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey, Mosely uses threads from all of these styles to tell the story of mortality and morality.